AVANTS TAKES THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN SPRING SIZZLER AT COLORADO NATIONAL SPEEDWAY

Source: Colorado National Speedway Public Relations
Date: 04/16/2006

The afternoon Qualification rounds started with the Midgets and Russ Harper put the Wagner Fabrication ride in the number 1 spot with a time of 16.079. Gary Taylor and Kyle Rayburn rounded out the top 3. In the Modified Coupe qualifications, Wayne Swanson in the Two Brothers Automotive Ford with a 16.431 set quick time. Second in the qualifications was Jim Weese followed by Jim Thorne. Terry Plummer pushed his Hobbytown USA sponsored Legend car to a quick time with a lap of 19.030. Jon Krizman and Chris Eggleston rounded out the top three. Paul Deines drove the Roof Check Incorporated Chevy to a quick time in the Pro Trucks with a 16.796 lap. Chris Leaf and Beau Kellogg rounded out the top 3. The Late Models were last to time in and the fastest of the 23 Late Models who timed in was the Hydrotex Chevy of Rick Smith with a lap of 16.298. Second and third quick went to Scotty Backman and Chris Archer.

The trophy dash for the evening was for the Modified Coupes. It took Wayne Swanson just over a lap to move from the back to battle with Gary Land for the lead. Once Swanson goy by Land, it opened the door for Greg McLaughlin to follow him into second. Swanson opened up a quarter-lap lead and easily won over McLaughlin, Land, Paul Deines in the Jim Weese owned 04 car, and Jim Thorne.

After Frank Denning led the first lap of the B main for the Modified Coupes, Craig Moore in the 44th Avenue Automotive Roadster spun in turn 1. Bruce Rhoades in the Bennett Auto Ford slammed hard into the turn 1 wall trying to avoid Moore. Unfortunately, both cars were done for the evening. Rick Bubak got around Denning on the restart, and on the last lap Marv Slusser was able to get around Denning. Bubak in the Capital Crane Ford took the win over Slusser, Denning, Bob Land, and Bobby Zike. Denning went for a spin in turn 1 after the checkered flag.

With a great start in the B, Kyle Clegg shot from the sixth starting spot to the lead, but nothing was going to stop Terry Plummer as he took over on the second lap. Chris Eggleston passed Clegg on lap 7 for second and then tried chasing down Plummer. Nothing was stopping Plummer’s Hobbytown USA ride as he won over Eggleston, Clyne, Scott Milan, and Greg O’Donnell. Mike Webber led early in the second B main with Jon Krizman and Greg Yongue chasing him down. On the third lap contact between Darrell Stewart and Jace Hansen sent Hansen spinning for a caution. Hansen wasn’t able to get his car restarted so he was in the infield. On the restart, Krizman and Yongue went to the front, and started a great battle, but in the end Krizman won by a nose over Yongue, Scott Miller as he used a late pass to get around Webber and Dennis Barkell in fifth.

The Pro Truck heat started off wild with Troy Witthar jumping to the early lead. As the pack was trying to get around Jake Snider, Snider got loose as two trucks split him and Billy Harkins slammed into the front wall. Harkins was able to drive his truck off the track. Back up front Witthar led Dan Savage who was driving the Joe Matlock truck. On the sixth lap, contact between Chris Leaf and Beau Kellogg in turn 1 sent Kellogg spinning. Leaf was sent to the back and Kellogg returned to his position. Mike Bowen took over second on lap 7 and started chasing down Witthar. On the next lap, Bowen and Witthar got together down the back-stretch and fiberglass went flying. A yellow flag was thrown, and Witthar was sent off the track for a little on-track altercation, and Bowen was black-flagged for his move on Witthar. This left Savage in the lead as he took the win over Kellogg, Leaf, and the other finisher Jake Snider. The second B main had the Rick Runkle truck jump out to the early lead over Richard Burton and Paul Deines. On lap 9 as the Burton and Deines trucks were racing hard for second, a little contact got Burton way loose as Deines snuck by. It was all Runkle as he won over Deines, Burton, Leaf and Steve Johnson.

A great field of 26 Late Models was split into two B Mains, and Mike Gallegos took off in the first B with Joe James Jr moving by Darren Robertson into second on lap 3. Dan Savage took over third from Robertson on lap 10, as Robertson started falling back. When the checkered flew, Mike Gallegos in the Steve’s Transmission and Gear Monte Carlo had the win over Joe James Jr, Dan Savage, Rick Smith, and Ed Vecchiarelli. Mike Hannah led early in the second Late Model B with Chris Eggleston right on his bumper. Eggleston took over on lap 3 and Larry Hunter spun in turn 2 on lap 6. On the next lap, caution was thrown for debris. Roger Avants, Ronnie Hults, and Scotty Backman started shuffling Hannah back. Then Bruce Yackey shuffled Hannah out of the top 5. On lap 13, contact from Backman sent Hults up the track and then Backman got by Avants late in the race. No one was able to stop the H2O Fire Protection Monte Carlo of Eggleston as he won over Backman, Avants, Hults, and Yackey.

The midgets were first out for their A main, and the 14 car field got lined up, but one problem. The Kyle Ray machine never fired so he was pushed off the track. Robert Hanley jumped out to the early lead over Darren Crocker. Keith Rauch in the Robert Hanley twin car, moved into third on lap 4. At the half-way mark, Crocker got started fading back as Russ Harper moved into second with an awesome move. Rauch was now third ahead of Gary Taylor. On lap 17, Harper took the lead, with Taylor second on lap 19 and then another lap later Rauch moved into third. The three battled for the final 5 laps as Scott Milan lost power on lap 23. At the white flag, the top 3 cars were almost three-wide and the fans rose to their feet. At the line Harper won by a nose over Taylor and Rauch. Hanley and Rayburn rounded out the top five positions.

The 16 Modified Coupes were next out but Larry McLaughlin was sparking and was sent off before the green flag. It didn’t take long for the dominator, Wayne Swanson to take the lead as he took it from Frank Denning on lap 2. Bill Willingham never got up to speed and was off on lap 3 ad Denning got shuffled back. Gary Land was now second over Jim Thorne, and Paul Deines. By lap 9, Swanson had a huge lead over Land. Frank Denning spun in turn 4 on lap 11. On lap 13, Paul Deines broke and wasn’t able to pull it off the track enough for a caution on lap 15. Rick Bubak was now fourth over Greg McLaughlin. On the restart Land stayed with Swanson for a couple laps, and then Swanson took off. Bubak got around Thorne for third on lap 18. Jim Weese cracked into the top 5 and then took over fourth late in the race. Nothing was stopping Swanson as he won over Land, Bubak, Jim Weese, and Jim Thorne.

All 26 of the Legend Cars stormed out next for the main event. John Chisea led the first lap, but it didn’t take long for Terry Plummer to storm into the lead. Chris Eggleston took over second on lap 3, and both Jon Krizman and Greg Yongue got around Chisea by lap 8. On lap 13 with the help of lapped traffic, Yongue moved into third with a pass on Jon Krizman, and Kyle Clegg had moved into fifth. There were battles everywhere on the track and lapped cars everywhere also. On lap 17, more lapped traffic saw Krizman get back by Yongue for third. But at the end, it was all Terry Plummer as he won over Eggleston, Krizman, Yongue, and Clegg.

The Snap-On Tools Pro Trucks were next out for their main event. Troy Witthar jumped out to the early lead over Rick Runkle and Billy Harkins. On lap 6 Mike Bowen broke towards turn 1, but wasn’t far enough off the track, so a yellow was thrown. Beau Kellogg got by the Harkins on lap 8 and Chris Leaf was fifth on lap 11. Kellogg and Witthar started a great battle for second that lasted almost 10 laps, when a lapped truck got in the way, forcing Witthar to fall back to fourth on lap 22. Runkle now led Kellogg, Leaf, Witthar, and Paul Deines. On lap 24, Savages great run ended as he slammed hard into the turn 3 wall. On the next lap, Jim Carter, Harkins, Steve Johnson, and Jake Snider all tangled in turn 4. On the restart Leaf started pressuring Kellogg, and Deines got by Witthar and joined the battle for second. Deines took over second on lap 27 and Leaf went to third. Runkle held on to the win with Deines, Leaf, Kellogg, and Witthar in the top 5.

The last event of the night was for the Wright Group Events and Services Late Models, as 24 cars rolled onto the track. Mike Hannah went around between turns 1 and 2 collecting Chris Eggleston, Nick Rozack, Bear Lynch, and Bruce Yackey. Dan Alamaa was just barely involved. Lynch, Yackey and Eggleston were in the pits. Roger Avants regained the lead as he was leading Joe James Jr and Mike Hannah. On lap 8, Hannah spun in turn 4 and got going again at the back. Scotty Backman moved into third on lap 10 with Dan Savage fourth and Ronnie Hults in fifth. Chris Archer moved into fifth on lap 17 as Avants and James had a great battle for the lead. On lap 18, Chris DeShon spun in turn 4 and backed into the Mike Gallegos machine sending Gallegos spinning into the infield for a caution. Under caution, Eggleston and Yackey returned with no front end. Backman got by James for second on lap 20, and Archer was fourth on lap 24. Hults got by Savage on lap 26, and Backman started pressuring Avants for the lead as James fell out of the top 5 momentarily. The three-way battle continued and it finally ended on lap 33 with Backman backing into the turn 1 wall and Archer having nowhere to go, but stopping to miss the wreck. Backman was sent to the rear, and Archer regained his position. With 8 laps left, Avants led Archer, James, Hults, and Savage. Savage got by Hults on lap 36 after contact between James and Hults. Savage’s run ended when he broke on lap 38. Avants was able to hold onto the win over Archer, Hults, James, and Rick Smith.

Next weekend is the “High Plains NASCAR Knock-Out” with the Sunoco Race Fuels Grand American Modifieds, Sportsman 50-lapper, Sheds R Us Super Stocks, Figure 8’s, Witthar Racing Trains and the return of Winged Sprint Cars to CNS.

========================================================== RMMRA Midgets 1. 9 Russ Harper, Watkins; 2. 5d Gary Taylor, Wheat Ridge; 3. 38 Keith Rauch, Littleton; 4. 33 Robert Hanley, Foxfield; 5. 99 Kyle Rayburn, Pueblo West; 6. 3 Butch Middleton; 7. 14 Tony Rossi, Westminster; 8. 2 Bobby Harr, Arvada; 9. 79 Darren Crocker, Littleton; 10. 31 Buddy Lowther, Thornton; 11. 8 Brandon Lee, Aurora; 12. 4 Scott Milan; Ft. Collins; 13. 30 Jim Cook.

C.A.R.C. Modified Coupes 1. 21 Wayne Swanson, Golden; 2. 55 Gary Land, Littleton; 3. 12 Rich Bubak, Golden; 4. 44 Jim Weese, Denver; 5. 20 Jim Thorne, Golden; 6. 57 Greg McLaughlin Arvada; 7. 99 Gary Land, Englewood; 8. 45 Carl Vair, Coal Creek Canyon; 9. 48 Marv Sluser, Denver; 10. 27 Bobby Zike, Morrison; 11. 7 Paul Brendenberg, Broomfield; 12. 87 Joseph St. Peter, Englewood; 13. 90 Frank Denning, Arvada; 14. 04 Paul Deines, Longmont; 15. 63 Bill Willingham, Denver.

RMLRA Legends 1. 14 Terry Plummer, Loveland; 2. 22 Chris Eggleston, Erie; 3. 8 Jon Krizman, Loveland; 4. 07 Greg Yongue, Centennial; 5. 66 Kyle Clegg, Westminster; 6. 4 Scott Milan, Ft. Collins; 7. 5 John Chisea, Lakewood; 8. 99 Greg O' Donnell, Laramie WY; 9.7 Scott Miller, Brighton; 10. 25 Dennis Barkell Windsor; 11. 03 Darrell Stewart. Arvada; 12. 84 Mike Webber, Erie; 13. 6 Brent Miller, Brighton; 14. 37 Justin Davis, Littleton; 15. 93 John Baker, Cheyenne WY; 16. 17 Bill Yeros, Lakewood; 17. 96 Rick Rusk, Aurora; 18. 08 Jace Hansen, Eaton; 19. 71 Craig Coughlin, Westminster; 20. 35 Mike Murr, Frederick; 21. 31 Bert Chapman, Boulder; 22. 16 Tim Hindman, Littleton; 23. 64 Bob Peck, Johnstown; 24. 26 Meggan Healy, Westminster; 25. 80 Brittney Johnson, Greeley; 26. Dee Duncan, Aurora.

Snap-On Tools Pro Trucks 1. 55 Rick Runkle, Arvada; 2. 17 Paul Deines, Longmont; 3. 07 Chris Leaf, Kersey; 4. 33 Beau Kellogg, Denver; 5. 5 Troy Witthar, Broomfield; 6. 36 Richard Burton, Englewood; 7. 7 Adam Deines, Longmont; 8. 78 Mark Bybee, Sedalia; 9. 0 Billy Harkins, Lakewood; 10. 02 Steve Johnson, Windsor; 11. 23 Jake Snider, Grand Junction; 12. 22 Dan Savage, Aurora; 13. 12 Jim Carter; 14. 21 Mike Bowen, Centennial.

The Wright Group Events and Services Late Models 1. 27 Roger Avants, Littleton; 2. Chris Archer, Arvada; 3. 42 Ronnie Hults, Centennial; 4. 54 Joe James Jr, Denver; 5. 31 Rick Smith, Gering NE; 6. 24 Chris DeShon, Littleton; 7. 18 Ed Vecchiarelli, Brighton; 8. 66 Darren Bucklen, Greeley; 9. 11 Darren Robertson, Arvada; 10. 28 Dan Alamaa, Colorado Springs; 11. 8 Larry Hunter, Englewood; 12. 76 Chad Cowan, Gering NE; 13. 5 Scotty Backman, Parker; 14. 73 Barney Visser, Eglewood; 15. 9 Chris Atkinson, Cheyenne WY; 16. 16 Mark Dixon, Longmont; 17. 74 Dan Savage, Aurora; 18. 21 Kyle Yattaw, Castle Rock; 19. 82 Nick Rozack, Denver; 20. 06 Mike Gallegos, Wheat Ridge; 21. 12 Bruce Yackey, Greeley; 22. 15 Mike Hannah, Platteville; 23. 22 Chris Eggleston, Erie; 24. 08 Bear Lynch, Denver.

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